The following excerpts pertaining to scientific research on negative ions are sited from the article:

“Ions are charged particles in the air that are formed when enough energy acts upon a molecule, such as carbon dioxide, oxygen, water, or nitrogen–to eject an electron. The displaced electron attaches itself to a nearby molecule, which then becomes a negative ion. It is the negative ion of oxygen that affects us most. Remember that feeling you’ve experienced near a waterfall or high in the mountains? Those are two such places where thousand of negative ions occur. They create an effect on human biochemistry.”

“Listed here are some excerpts from just a few of the scientific studies on the subject of negative ions.”

“The most recent and exciting study was published in the February, 1995 issue of “Journal of Alternative and Comparative Medicine”, a journal of the Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center. The results of this study were also reported on CBS News with Connie Chung.”

“Researchers Dr. Michael Terman (head of Columbia’s Winter depression department) and Dr. Jiuan Su Terman conducted a study of the impact of negative ion therapy on people suffering from seasonal affective disorder (winter depression)–an illness that is often symptomatically indistinguishable from “all-year” depression; researchers believe that the biology of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is very similar to that of “all-year” depression, hence, the same antidepressant drugs (such as Prozac) are used to treat both.”

“The study was conducted in double blind fashion and divided clinically depressed subjects into two groups. The subjects in the first group were treated for 30 minutes a day for 20 days with a low density ion generator that produced only 10,000 ions/cubic centimeter (the control group). The subjects in the second group were treated for 30 minutes a day for 20 days with a high density ion generator that produced 2,700,000 ions/cubic centimeter (the experimental group). The remission or “cure” criterion used was a 50% or greater reduction in symptom frequency and severity using the SAD version of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. The results of this study shocked the medical community: While a low density negative ion generator provided little benefit, a high density negative ion generator gave relief from depression comparable to that given by Prozac and other antidepressants, without drug side effects.”

“About 15 years ago, a double-blind study was conducted at the Air Force Aerospace Medical Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio. The study was published in the August, 1982 issue of the prominent medical journal “Aviation, Space, and Environmental Medicine” in an article entitled “Subjective Response to Negative Air Ion Exposure.”

“It has also been shown that in addition to possibly having a profound effect on mood and energy, negative ions may have a strong impact on cognitive functioning. In 1965, in the journal “Psychophysiology”, a study, “Behavioral Effects of Ionized Air on Rats”, was published. In this study, the effects of negatively ionized air on the mental functioning of rats was tested. Researchers Duffee and Koontz reported on page 358 of the journal: “the water-maze performance improved by 350%,” showing a dramatic improvement in cognitive functioning.

“To support that negative ions also improve the cognitive functioning of humans as well, in April of 1978, in the science journal “Ergonomics”, a study was conducted at the University of Surrey, England, and published in an article entitled, “Air Ions and Human Performance”. Once again, the results were encouraging.”

“The normal ion count in fresh country air is 2,000 to 4,000 negative ions per cubic centimeter (about the size of a sugar cube). At Yosemite Falls, you’ll experience over 100,000 negative ions per cubic centimeter. On the other hand, the level is far below 100 per cubic centimeter of Los Angeles freeways during rush hour.”

“Research on ions began in the 1950s with Dr. Albert Kreuger, professor emeritus of the University of California at Berkeley, and Dr. Felix Sulman, professor of pharmacology at the Hebrew University in Israel.

Dr. Kreuger excited the scientific world when he discovered ions to be biologically active, stimulated production of the powerful chemical serotonin, 5-HT. Serotonin is a very active neuro-hormone which causes profound neural, glandular, and digestive effects throughout the body.

Dr. Sulman corroborated Kreuger’s findings while studying positive ion victims of the hot, dry Sharav winds in Jerusalem. He demonstrated three effects of positive ion excess: irritation and tension, exhaustion, and hyperthyroid response. Most of these conditions, along with symptoms of depression, anxiety, headaches, and low-energy physical and mental functions, were shown to be alleviated or totally eliminated by increasing the negative ion count in the air.

“While ionization of the air is mandatory in many European and Russian hospitals and workplaces, it has only recently come to light in our country with the growing problem of toxic air in our urban environments.”

Read the full article regarding the scientific research on negative ions @ Comtech Research

Results from Columbia University Study- Scientific Research on the Beneficial Effects of Negative Ions in Depression Treatment / Natural Salt Treatments – sited directly from the Columbia University Website

Negative Ion Therapy For Depression

Treating Depression with Atypical Symptoms Using Negative Air Ions at High Density

It is estimated that about 10 million Americans suffer from winter depression at a fully syndromal level, with another 25 million suffering at a milder subsyndromal level which is less debilitating and may not meet diagnostic severity criteria. The hallmarks of winter depression are atypical neurovegetative symptoms: continual fatigue, increased need for sleep, increased appetite and weight gain. Patients with nonseasonal atypical depression, an even larger group, show a symptom profile similar to that of winter depression.

Both seasonal and nonseasonal depression have been treated with the broad spectrum of antidepressant drugs including the serotonergic class. By contast, this non-pharmaceutical technology provides a method for treating depression with atypical symptoms using negative air ions at a high density. Candidate mechanisms of action include serotonergic stimulation and enhanced blood oxygenation.

Depressed Patients Placed in Environment of High Density Negative Air Ions
In accordance with the technology, patients with depression are treated by placing them in an environment of high-density negative air ions (superoxide) produced by an ion generator for at least one interval of time on a daily basis over a period of 10-20 days. The high density exposure was accomplished by placing an ion generator unit in proximity to the patient’s head and with the ion-emitting electrodes pointing toward the patient.

Clinical evaluation performed according to accepted psychiatric evaluation techniques determined that there was a clinical remission of depressive and neurovegetative symptoms in a statistically significant number of patients compared with a low-density ion control.

Advantages:
� The treatment is efficient in brief treatment home-treatment sessions; there is no physical confinement for patients.
� The treatment is a non-pharmacologic environmental manipulation with apparently negligible side-effects.